PHILADELPHIA – After a decade and a half on Hawk Hill, Ian Crookenden has announced that the 2022-23 campaign will be his last as the head coach of the Saint Joseph's women's tennis team, as the longtime leader of Hawk tennis will retire at the conclusion of the season.

After his retirement as head coach, Crookenden will remain involved with the Hawk tennis programs.

"I have been blessed to have had the opportunity to spend the latter part of my tennis career coaching at Saint Joseph's University," Crookenden said. "I have thoroughly enjoyed working with the student-athletes on both the women's and men's squads over the years. I am retiring from my current position but I definitely plan on being around to help my successor; I enjoy working with the SJU athletic community too much to not be around in some capacity."

"On behalf of the entire Saint Joseph's community, I want to thank Coach Crookenden for his incredible dedication to our student-athletes over the past 15 years," Vice President and Director of Athletics Jill Bodensteiner said. "Ian's love of tennis and his passion for teaching the sport have created a lasting legacy on Hawk Hill, and we are thrilled that he will remain involved with the tennis program even as he enjoys a well-deserved retirement."

Currently in his 15th season with the Hawks as Director of Tennis, Crookenden has notched 223 combined victories in his tenure at Saint Joseph's, having served as the head coach of both the men's and women's programs since his arrival on campus in the fall of 2008 through the end of the 2021-22 season, when he shifted to focusing on the women's squad. His collegiate coaching career has spanned 26-plus seasons, during which he has recorded 383 career wins.

Shortly after arriving on campus, Crookenden spearheaded the creation of the SJU Tennis Complex and founded the annual Saint Joseph's Invitational tournaments that have brought men's and women's teams and players from across the Mid-Atlantic region to Hawk Hill for a weekend of strong competition every fall.

Crookenden has guided the Hawks to a combined 11 Atlantic 10 quarterfinal appearances across both the men's and women's squads. During his tenure leading the men's team, the Hawks won a program single-season record 17 matches in 2013-14 while Kyle Chalmers tied the program's all-time career wins mark in 2017.

Under Crookenden's guidance, Amanda Nava became the first Hawk to earn four All-Atlantic 10 honors in her career as well as the first to earn three First Team selections. She wrapped up her career with the second-most victories in women's program history behind Aurora Davis and just ahead of recent Saint Joseph's Athletic Hall of Fame inductee Casey Robinson; all three spent their entire Hawk careers under Crookenden's tutelage, as did Kelly Mulquin and Claire Minnoe, who rank fourth and fifth, respectively. In addition to the top five spots on the all-time victories list, Crookenden has overseen all 10 of the women's program's highest single-season victory totals as well.

The Hawks have excelled in the classroom during Crookenden's tenure as well, earning numerous Atlantic 10 All-Academic and Philadelphia Inquirer Academic All-Area honors while becoming a fixture on the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's annual All-Academic honors list.

Crookenden enjoyed an outstanding playing career at UCLA, helping lead the Bruins to a national championship in 1965 and runner-up finishes in 1966 and 1967. He partnered with the legendary Arthur Ashe to win the NCAA doubles championship in 1965 before repeating as champion alongside another legend in Charlie Pasarell the following year. He was inducted into the ITA Hall of Fame in 1997.

As a professional, Crookenden represented New Zealand in the Davis Cup on two occasions and also competed in Grand Slam tournaments at Wimbledon, the French Open, and the US Open.

After wrapping up his playing career, Crookenden would go on to become the head men's tennis coach and indoor tennis club director at Wake Forest for 12 years, where he would guide nine players to All-ACC honors and coached All-America honorees in both singles and doubles. Crookenden then went on to become the Director of Tennis at the Philadelphia Cricket Club in 1997 before landing on Hawk Hill in 2008.

The Hawks are scheduled to kick off Crookenden's final spring at the helm on February 4 when they visit Navy.